War of the future: access to the customer

Even though feature rich content like over the top applications are focused mainly at the consumer, the enterprise market is quickly realising the benefits of similar platforms, says GRANT THEIS.

While feature rich content and services are focused predominantly on the consumer market, the enterprise market is fast realising the potential such platforms have to offer.

Feature rich services and content have become as pervasive as the connectivity on which they depend,” says Grant Theis, co-founder of ttrumpet. “While they have become disruptive in the consumer space, as connectivity and capacity increases, the realisation is emerging that the enterprise space could use such applications to offer additional value add to both their process and their customers.

Hendrik Malan, Operations Director, Africa, Frost & Sullivan, agrees: “Feature rich services, such of Over the Top (OTT) applications offer a number of benefits. They are accessible from anywhere, there are no upfront costs, they have massive scalability, yet can offer a personalised service, and they lend themselves to everyday usage. As a result, if we look at the enterprise space, existing services can easily be switched to the feature rich platform and the combination of different services can be an enticing value driver to businesses in such a competitive market.

Looking at the enterprise space, consider such services being used in core functions such as HR for increased workforce management, finance for streamlined billing services, operations or customer contact areas for increased collaboration, and even marketing for enhanced customer relations.

Essentially, it’s all about convenience, control and efficiency,” says Theis. “And while certainly feature rich services and applications present a compelling case for the enterprise, attributes of the enterprise space will similarly drive the levels of profitability of such services.

In comparison to the consumer market, enterprises are more predictable, requirements are better defined, change is slower and of course it offers increased security and better profitability.

Enterprises have an existing spend and revenue model that they can tap into. At the same time there is a major opportunity for both cost savings and additional revenue opportunities which makes feature rich services very sustainable in this context,” adds Malan. “Additionally, these platforms can be integrated into other revenue streams and customised accordingly.

Operators and enterprises can make use of the ttrumpet platform to create their own feature rich content and service business model. As the app integrate into the mobile operator or enterprise, at a network layer, integration is seamless and full interoperability allowing for bespoke eco-systems to be created.

The dynamics of customer engagement is changing and if we consider the growth and increasing demand for Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and more recently, Bring Your Own App (BYOA) it is evident that the enterprise space is changing – and rapidly. As a result, co-opetition and partnerships between operators, enterprises and rich content and services in a packaged application will be key to profitability,” concludes Theis.

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